


The Most Arrogant Man in Japan

by DragonSilk



Category: Yu-Gi-Oh!
Genre: Angst, Character Study, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, F/M, One Shot, Reader-Insert
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-08-16
Updated: 2013-08-16
Packaged: 2017-12-23 16:17:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,999
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/928565
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/DragonSilk/pseuds/DragonSilk
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arrogance goes hand in hand with insecurity. The people who put themselves forward, declaring, “I am the best,” need other people to believe them. They need other people to acknowledge them because they don’t actually believe it themselves. </p><p>The louder they proclaim their superiority, the less they actually believe it. </p><p>Seto Kaiba/Reader</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Most Arrogant Man in Japan

**Author's Note:**

> Initially, I planned for this to have a different ending. Then Kaiba came in and basically took over. I think I could have kept going, and maybe one day I'll write a sequel to this.
> 
> I actually wrote this back in Decemberish. I was going through some hard stuff, and it was hard to write anything uplifting.
> 
> Lyrics from "Insecurity" by Scars On 45. (Look it up if you're curious. It's a beautiful song.)

_Well it's just one kiss,  
_ _and it'll all crash down._

When you first started seeing Kaiba romantically, you weren’t surprised to discover that he was a possessive man. He wasn’t openly possessive, but when he was out with you, he would place a hand on your back to signal that the two of you were together. Open displays of affection were not his thing, but he always found a way to make it apparent that the two of you were involved. He made it very clear to any man who glanced your way that you were off-limits.

However, his jealousy surprised you. The first time he thought you were flirting with another man, he overreacted. You managed to calm him down, but something that he said in a fit of anger remained lodged in your head.

It repeated over and over. “ _You’re just waiting for someone better to come along_.”

Did he really believe that? It was awful. Did he really think you were so horrible? Why would you stay with a man you didn’t like? Obviously Kaiba was wealthy, and he was used to girls throwing themselves at him because of it. You just thought that he knew you weren’t one of them. You didn’t want him for his money. It was insulting that he could say something like that about you.

While you were thinking about all the reasons why you liked him, you began to wonder how he could even believe that there were better men out there. There were no better men. He was so arrogant that you couldn’t believe that he didn’t know that. How could he ever think that anyone would want to leave him?

You knew that you couldn’t ask him directly. Whenever Kaiba talked about his childhood or even just his past, he was always vague. It was very obvious that talking about himself made him uncomfortable.

Eventually, he realized his mistake, and you forgave him for insulting you, but you didn’t forget his words. They stayed with you, making you uncomfortable.

Then the list of Japan’s Most Eligible Bachelors came out. It wasn’t an official list, just something that one of the popular magazines did every year. Since you were dating him, Kaiba technically wasn’t single. Nobody cared. He ended up number one on the list for yet another year.

Still, you picked up the magazine and browsed the article about him. It was, as usual, completely devoid of any mention that Kaiba might not be single. “I wonder if you’ll continue to win even after we’re married,” you commented to him.

When his head snapped up so he could stare at you, you realized your error. “If we get married,” you corrected. “I meant if.” You didn’t want to scare him by being too clingy, but you did hope to marry him one day.

He looked back down at his work without comment, and you assumed that meant you were in the clear. Feeling playful, you leaned onto his desk and held out the magazine to him. “Wanna read what they have to say about you?”

“Don’t be ridiculous.” He shoved your arm away. “I’m working.”

You didn’t let his grumpy attitude dissuade you. “They’ve got some facts in here for once. There’s a lot of information on your charity work.”

He scoffed. “I’m sure they had to come up with some excuse to justify giving me first place again.” He snatched the magazine from your hands. “Stating that I’m the richest man in Japan was probably getting old.”

You stared at him, and the words, “someone better,” flashed through your head. It made you wary of his sudden shift in mood. “You know that everything you’ve done for orphans... all that money you donate? It’s incredibly generous.”

“I can afford it.”

You were tempted to wrestle the magazine from his hands. “Turning Kaiba Corp. into a gaming company made the world a better place, and instead of selling all the blueprints and leftover weaponry, you destroyed it.”

“I was young and impulsive.” He threw the magazine aside. “This is all bullshit. I’m only number one because I’m wealthy and young.”

He went back to work, pounding his fingers down on his keyboard and getting frustrated as he hit the wrong keys. You just stared at him in shock. He honestly didn’t see any of his good qualities. You walked around his desk and stood next to him.

“Seto.” You reached out and grabbed his hands, gently at first but firmer when he resisted. “Why do you think I’m dating you?”

He didn’t look at you as you laced your fingers with his. “I don’t have time for this.” His voice was gruff, but he didn’t pull away from you. “I have work to do.”

This was even worse than you thought. It wasn’t that he suspected you of being a gold-digger. He just didn’t understand why anyone would want to be with him. You had to wrap your arms around him and bury your face in his hair. It was too heart breaking.

Either the position was too awkward, or he was starting to feel uncomfortable. Kaiba gently pushed you away. You wouldn’t be dissuaded, however, and you sat down on his lap. He had to look at you now, and you were able to see his face clearly.

His expression was completely blank, and that was never a good sign. Nobody could accurately read his emotions when he was expressionless like this. Not even Mokuba. You couldn’t tell what he was feeling, but you knew that he was shutting down. He was so uncomfortable with his emotions that he was trying to force himself to ignore them.

Well, you weren’t going to let that happen. Not now. Not when it was so important.

You just didn’t know what to do. You couldn’t simply tell him that you loved him for everything he was. He wouldn’t believe you. As tempting as it was to consider showing your love, somehow you didn’t think that would work either.

“You know, the first time I talked to you, I wanted to punch you,” you blurted out.

He raised an eyebrow, clearly not expecting this turn to the conversation. “You never mentioned that before.”

You bit your lip, trying to hold back your smile. “That’s because thinking about it still makes me want to punch you. I’d been waiting for a table for at least half an hour, and I was hungry!”

He was smirking now. You knew he was thinking about the way he’d just walked into that restaurant and received a table. “You didn’t seem too angry when you decided to eat with me.”

“Oh I was angry alright. And hungry enough to eat a horse.” You playfully tapped his nose. “You made them throw me out. That’s what really made me wanna punch you. I mean, really, it should have been my table.”

He was amused until he remembered what you had done in revenge. You saw the exact moment that thought crossed his mind, and you kissed him to distract him. The kiss only lasted a moment, just enough time for one of his hands to start wandering up and down your back, before you pulled away.

His other hand grabbed the back of your head, keeping you still. “You still owe me a new suit.”

“Oh, it’s not like you don’t have at least fifty different suits in your closet.” You smiled and leaned forward, pressing your forehead against his. “You don’t really need a replacement.”

He just grunted.

Maybe spilling hot soup on him had been out of line. You were honestly lucky that you weren’t dead right now. Still, he had deserved it at the time. “You know, you already got me back for the suit. You still owe me the money I had to pay when you had my car towed.”

He chuckled under his breath, still pleased with himself.

“We could do this all night, you know. We both did some pretty horrible stuff to each other.” You grabbed the front of his shirt. “What’s important is that we found a way to get past that, or at least, I got over it once I realized how wonderful you are.”

His expression told you that he was surprised by your confession. Good.

“You know, I saw you in the park one day. You were with Mokuba. I thought about finding some way to push you into the pond. I followed you, thinking I’d get a chance to get back at you for getting me banned from every restaurant in town.” You tapped his nose, and he snatched your hand, pulling it away from his face. You just grinned. “But do you know what I saw? I saw you pick up a crying kid.” His eyes widened. “Yeah. A crying little girl. You bought her some cotton candy to calm her down, and then helped her find her parents. I was watching you the entire time.” He was trying to look away from you now, probably embarrassed. You didn’t know what it was about the man, but Seto Kaiba didn’t seem to want anyone to know about it when he was nice. You grabbed his cheeks and tried to force him to look at you. “I’m sure you said something rude to her parents, but I saw the way you helped that girl.”

You paused and then wrapped your arms around him. You didn’t want to make him uncomfortable, but he needed to hear this. So you whispered, “I’ve watched you, and I’ve seen every single amazing thing you’ve done, Seto Kaiba. You may not like it, but I see the way you help people. You’re amazing.”

You sat there for a moment, hugging him, until one of his arms wrapped around you. With his other hand, he rubbed your scalp. The two of you just sat there for a moment, holding each other. You hoped that he felt better, but you really didn’t know if your words had gotten through to him. Kaiba was difficult to read and nearly impossible to understand.

When he pushed you away, you willingly got off his lap.

“Let me take you home.” His voice was gruff.

“Sure. Okay.” There was nothing more you could do right now. Hopefully he would think about what you’d said.

He drove you home himself. He was silent the entire way, and from the way he gripped the steering wheel, you were pretty sure that he was thinking.

You were also sure that his thoughts weren’t good.

He parked in front of your place and silently walked you up to your door. He stood there while you unlocked your door.

“Do you want to come in?” you asked once the door was open.

He shook his head, grabbed you by the shoulders, and pulled you in for a kiss. He wrapped an arm around your waist and supported you. He broke away, giving you a moment to breathe, before he was kissing you again. That was okay. He was all the air you needed to breathe right now.

By the time he pulled away, you were almost dizzy. “Are you sure you don’t want to come in?” you purred, trying to nuzzle his neck.

“No, I can’t.” He pushed you away and led you back into your house.

You wondered why he was saying no but walking into your home.

He left you standing in your hall and walked back to the door. “You deserve someone better than me,” he said, facing away from you, his hand on the door. “You deserve a man who remembers your birthday. A man who pays more attention to you.”

“Wait.” You couldn’t understand what he was saying. “What…”

“Goodbye.” He pulled the door shut on his way out.

 

_Ignorance is bliss in this cold and wet town.  
_ _If I could bring myself to venture through this bold and bruised door,  
_ _well, I might make it..._


End file.
